GARCÍA PIMIENTA: "THE QUALITY OF THE SQUAD MEANS EVERYONE IS PREPARED"

First-team head, Xavi García Pimienta, gave his analysis of Friday night's away win over RCD Espanyol: ‘Fortunately or unfortunately, we know all the teams. They are a team that do very well, very solid in their stadium. If we didn't match them, we wouldn't have a chance. We were competitive, we won duels, we knew how to suffer and we were accurate in front of goal. We're very happy to have won our first game away from home.

‘Everything depends on being solid defensively, we have players with a lot of quality. If we don't defend with the same intensity with which the opposition attacks, then we won't have a chance. We have the right idea when we have control of the ball, with our wingers constantly threatening, especially Dodi. I was also very happy with Idumbo's performance. Today, Dodi's effectiveness was very important. It's all about competing, and being solid at the back. This shows us the way forward,’ added the coach.

"‘The players are ready and if we compete like this, the team will perform well."

Concerning Ørjan Nyland, the coach he was nervous: ‘It's the knee, when he went off, it scared me a little bit because he is always available. It looks like it could be the ligament issue. Let's hope it's nothing serious.

He also valued the high performance of the squad: ‘The quality of this team means that everyone is ready. I'm fair to those who play and those who don't. We had some important long-term absentees. We had some important long-term absentees, but we won't make excuses because we have people ready. The winger position is a problem because we don't have many players. The team is ready and if we compete like this, people will perform.’

‘The team is focused, we are realistic. We have an idea and a way forward. If we compete in this way, we will be closer to achieving something important. We have to be competitive, but keep our feet on the ground. The moment we go down or think we're going to get there because of the club's reputation alone.  We need to stay patience, but also enjoy a victory that required a lot of effort. There is always going to be suffering, football is very rarely a smooth journey, but I'm happy for the fans. There were a lot of them in the stands, and they saw their team win in person. This victory is for them.’